You don't have to eat meat to get enough calories. Grains, legumes, many root vegetables and nuts are all decent sources of calories. Most fruits are lower in calories but avocados and durians are good fruit sources.

Kyosan wrote:You don't have to eat meat to get enough calories. Grains, legumes, many root vegetables and nuts are all decent sources of calories. Most fruits are lower in calories but avocados and durians are good fruit sources.

Thanks What's a root vegetable? I think there's some nuts laying around here.

White potatoes, sweet potatoes and yams are root vegetables that are higher in calories. With white potatoes you can use some salt, water/milk and extra virgin olive oil and mash them; they are tasty that way. Or make mashed potatoes and gravy. Gravy is usually made with fat, so it is also a source of calories.

Kyosan wrote:You don't have to eat meat to get enough calories. Grains, legumes, many root vegetables and nuts are all decent sources of calories. Most fruits are lower in calories but avocados and durians are good fruit sources.

Forget the docs and see a nutritionist if you can. Many doctors spend very little time in training in nutrition.

if you eat more calories than you use, you will gain weight.

Protein is in cheese, in eggs, in tofu, quorn and nuts, for example. Nuts are a fantastic way to take in calories easily and if you eat a varierty they will give you other nutrients you need. Cheese and nuts are also high in fat, which is good, albeit that at some point you need to consider cholesterol, but forget that for now.

To gain fat, the best advice is a balance of carbohydrates - potatoes, rice etc but you might just think about what you can take in at the moment, even if it is doughnuts, cake and cookies, high in sugar. Also, chocolate is a valuable food, especially when 'raw', as in not processed at high temperatures.

If you're having problems with appetite then also consider some of the 'complete' meal replacements, protein shakes etc, as well as smoothies.

Fatty foods, such as cheddar cheese, nuts and butter, margarine, cream, and sour cream are highest in calories per weight of food. Sugars are fast and easy to digest. Fatty sweet foods, like brownies are some of both.

I wish I had your problem.

HHDL: "My confidence in venturing into science lies in my basic belief that as in science so in Buddhism, understanding the nature of reality is pursued by means of critical investigation: if scientific analysis were conclusively to demonstrate certain claims in Buddhism to be false, then we must accept the findings of science and abandon those claims."

I went through something similar when my mother passed away. There was so much to do, so much to worry about that my appetite failed completely and I lost thirty pounds in six weeks. For that to happen, most days my intake consisted a few cups of coffee, and a half sandwich or something every few days. Eventually I noticed I was losing too much too fast, so when the occaisional mild interest in food arose, I made sure to grab something rich and sweet like pastries or cakes. For me, that was the beginning of re-establishing regular eating habits.

Oh, and get your thyroid checked. Sixty pounds in six weeks would be impossible for most people even if they had nothing but water.